Too Long
by KingJocive
Summary: In modern day England, Merlin and Arthur as high school teachers. Merlin remembers everything that happened in the past, but Arthur was reincarnated and only remembers growing up in the 20th centenary. Morgana and Mordred are also back and remember everything. They want to make things right with Merlin. Ships in this are Merlin/Arthur and Merlin/Mordred. Not at the same time.
1. Chapter 1

It had been years. Merlin was still looking young and he was still alone. His friends had passed thousands of years before and he had gone to college out of boredom several times. He had been a doctor for a while in the twenties and a biologist in the sixties, he worked as a university teacher at Princeton and a preschool teacher which he enjoyed for a while before having to go off the grid again.

It was now 2013 and he needed a job and some money, he came across an add on a high school website, where he found three openings; grade twelve chemistry teacher, grade ten English teacher and night time custodian. The choice between the three was kind of hard for him to decide upon. If he chose English he would get to teach Romeo and Juliet, which was one of his favorite Shakespeare plays, if he chose the custodian he would get some peace and quiet while he cleaned. He wasn't exactly the cleanest person himself, but he did enjoy being alone and listening to music and the big floor buffers they have now are cool as heck, so he was considering this quite a bit.

After a few days of thinking he had made a decision. Starting September, Merlin would be a grade twelve chemistry teacher. He would teach one of the things he loved most, and one of the closest things to magic there is. Who knows, maybe he'll even throw in a little bit of magic while he's teaching, just to make the class a little more interesting for the kids.

Merlin applied online, sending his resume and his letter of recommendation to the school board by email. After a day or so he got an email back asking for an interview. He agreed and they made a meet up date and time. Merlin had to get his police check for them and a few other things that were boring and time consuming, but he didn't have much else to do and he loved meeting new people even if it was just for a short amount of time.

When the day finally came for Merlin to meet with the people of the school board Merlin was actually a little nervous, but things went extremely well for him. He got the job and when he started at the school the kids loved him.

Two years had passed since he started working there, they had already lost the English teacher that started shortly after Merlin and Merlin who had signed up for the exchange student program had two students live in his guest room throughout the two years. It was the beginning of a new year and Merlin was very excited to meet his new exchange student, Alex, who was coming from America and the new principal who he had heard was a woman named Morgan Pendington. He had heard nothing about the new English teacher however and that was making him a little anxious. He could be anyone. He could be a she. He could be an evil chipmunk from hell, looking for revenge for the forest they cut down to make the school. OR WORSE! He could be a know-it-all prat.

A few days before school started again, Merlin had some shopping he had to do for a few extra things he got for the class every year so far, just some things to make his class a little more fun. He also wanted to get some things for Alex to make his stay a little more homey.

When Alex got to the airport in England Merlin drove there to pick him up, humming softly to the songs on the radio as he drove and when he got to the airport with a sign that had Alex's name written on it he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Mr. Emrys...?" Said a familiar, dark haired boy, who wasn't all that much younger than Merlin's appearance. The boy had a warm, slightly devious smile and a hand extended to shake his new teacher and roommates. "It's been a while, Merlin... I'm your exchange student."

"Mordred... How... You're dead." Merlin muttered, fighting back the distress that was boiling in his gut, as he didn't want to make a scene in the middle of a busy airport.

"And now I'm back.. Strange, isn't it? Did you think that Arthur was the only important person back then? No. I'm American now and very important and I have a pretty hot accent." Mordred said with a small shrug then put a hand on Merlin's shoulder, seeing as he wasn't going to shake it, and lead the stunned man out of the building. After a moment of looking around he asked. "Which car is yous?.. Please don't tell me it's the dirty beater.." He said, looking at an old, rusty beetle that he assumed Merlin had gotten for cheap at a junk yard. "It is your, isn't it?" Mordred grumbled, watching Merlin take his keys out of his pocket, his eyes rolling at how much the other male spoke.

"Yes... It's mine.. What happened to you?.. You use to be so quiet." Merlin complained, unlocking the trunk and letting Mordred put his bags in.

Mordred sighed and rolled his eyes, closing the trunk and getting into the passenger side. "I was born in America... What did you expect? Don't worry, it probably won't be as noticeable when everyone else shows up."

"Well I would recommend shutting up before I just kick you out of my car and make you go back to America...But first tell me who 'Everyone' is..." Merlin said with an annoyed expression After he got in and started the car.

Mordred hummed softly and leaned his seat back before turning the radio on which was instantly turned back off by Merlin. "Well first of all; you can't send me back to America unless you pay for my ticket and I doubt you have that kind of money, and second of all; I have no idea who 'everyone' is." He said before putting his hands behind his head, using them as a pillow. "You should calm down a little bit though... I've been doing a lot of reading on the internet and stuff and this century is hilarious... Cheer up... Get Tumblr.. Watch some shows and read some fanfictions.."

The words that came from the younger male made Merlin cringe a little. 'Cheer up'? How was he suppose to cheer up when he was sitting in the car with the man that killed his best friend? He felt a rant coming on like a freight train and there was no stopping it. "You're kidding... Right? I have finally, almost gotten over the fact that everyone I have ever cared about is dead. I've been waiting for the day that Arthur comes back and for some reason he hasn't. There have been so many wars where we could have used Arthur, but he hasn't come back. I have been through hell and what do I get? Not Arthur, but the brat that killed him! So sorry for not being happy enough for your liking, Mordred, But I've really wanted to run over you with a car since the bloody things were invented, so excuse me for not being cheerleader of the year at the moment, I'll try a little harder next time!"

Mordred stayed silent for a moment, thinking over the others words before straightening his seat a little bit and looking down at his lap where his hands were now neatly placed. "I'm sorry... I didn't know you still had such strong feelings about that. I'm sorry I killed your man crush." Mordred added then glanced out the window as Merlin started to drive the car slowly out of the large parking lot.

Merlin sighed softly and nodded, eyes fixed on the road as he shook his head. "And I'm sorry I got your girlfriend killed." He muttered.

The rest of the car ride was silent. Mordred didn't speak, Merlin didn't speak and there were no more attempts to turn on the radio. When they got back to Merlin's house they both got out and Mordred looked at his new, temporary home with a nod. "I was kind of scared your house would be as crappy as your car.. But it's actually pretty decent."

Merlin rolled his eyes and didn't reply to the statement about his house. "Is this the new transfer student, Merlin?... He looks a lot like my grandson." Said an old voice from behind Merlin. Merlin's lips almost instantly curled up into a smile and he turned around to see his neighbor, Jerry, and the atmosphere around him instantly went from tense and angered to light and happy. Jerry had been in the hospital for a few months and this was the first time Merlin had seen or heard of him, so this was very exciting for the young man.

"Jerry. You're out of the hospital?" He asked with a smile then reached out a hand to shake the elderly mans. "You had me very concerned for a while. I thought I wouldn't have you over for tea anymore."

"Hah! You can't get rid of me that easily... You youngsters think I'm just a fragile old man, but I just got a new hip and after a month of physical therapy I'm good as new. I could probably even beat you in a race, now." Jerry said in a chipper tone that made Merlin laugh softly. This man was always so sweet and like a grandfather to all the people in the small neighborhood they lived in.

"I bet you could have beaten me before." Merlin replied with a small laugh.

"Well then.. Now that that's out of the way... Who's this?" He asked with a smile, looking at Mordred who was silently waiting for Merlin to take him inside.

"This is Mordred... He's from America and he's a bit of a brat." Merlin answered in a whisper, smiling softly before glancing back at Mordred. The student now was glaring at him, but Merlin wasn't too concerned about that at the moment. In fact he was almost use to the expression.

"You know I'm standing right here... Right?... I can hear you." Mordred growled out before holding out his hand to Jerry. "Pleasure to meet you, sir... Mr. Emrys didn't tell me that he had such a lively neighbor."

"Well, I'll try my best to keep it down on bingo night." Jerry joked as he shook Mordred's hand. "I'll take you out sometime and show you around town... Merlin needs a little bit of space sometimes.. He's been through a lot lately, with the school year starting and the English teacher leaving. From what I hear, he fancied her quite a bit." He added in a soft tone, causing Merlin to look down with a small blush. It was true though, she had reminded him quite a bit of Freya and they were even together for a short while before she had to go to France to visit her dying grandmother and for some reason never got back in touch with him.

Mordred paused for a moment before smiling softly and nodding slowly. "That would be nice, thank you." He said happily before turning to get his bags. "It was nice meeting you, but I would really like to go get settled in my new home before it gets dark.. And I would like to get to know Mr. Emrys a little better."

"Yes.. Well have a nice night, Mordred. You too Merlin.. I hope to see you again soon. Perhaps the two of you can come over for tea sometime?"

"That sounds nice, Jerry. Thank you." Merlin said with a smile then shook his hand again before turning to close the trunk after Mordred got his bags and was halfway to the door. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, after I'm done my paperwork.. Goodbye Mr. Jones." He said with a smile, walking to his door, waving at the old man and receiving a wave back before he turned away to unlock and open the door. "Take off your shoes... I just vacuumed." Merlin said in a soft grumble before kicking his shoes off and closing the door behind them.

"What's your wifi?" Mordred asked as soon as he walked in the door.

"I'm not telling you until you get unpacked." Merlin said and rolled his eyes. "You're room is right next to the toilet... The toilet is the only room up there with the door open... And I'm ordering pizza, so you better like it." He explained as he walked into the kitchen and picked up the phone. "Go get settled... I'll give you the wifi when you come back down." He told Mordred with the phone up to his ear.

"I'll give you a bit of money if you get extra cheese on it." Mordred told the other before walking up the stairs. He set his bags down as he walked into the room that he assumed was his. "And bacon!" He shouted from the doorway before looking around and biting his lip. No desk. Where would he put his laptop?

After a few minutes of folding clothes and putting them away in the dresser that was next to the closet, Mordred sat down on the bed and pulled out his laptop then his charger. What's the password?" He shouted from his room, not wanting to get up.

"I already told you! I'm not telling until you're down here and done packing!" Merlin shouted back from the bottom of the stairs. "Or!... You could tell me who 'everyone' is and I'll go up there and tell you!" He added with a bargaining smirk that Mordred couldn't see, but just by hearing the tone of his voice he could tell what his facial expression was. They did spend quite a bit of time together after all.

"No can do, Mr. Emrys. I'm not allowed to tell you." Mordred said with a shrug then slowly started downstairs, a small smile of his own on his lips. "And when I say, 'Not allowed to.' What I really mean is, 'I want you to come up with really crappy thoughts because it's funny when you get paranoid and irrational.' plus I don't know."

"I figured." Merlin said and rolled his eyes as he turned around. "And I'm not scared about who it is... You seem to know a lot about this century and I think that whoever it is will know as well, and if they really want to take over the country then they can just run for Prime Minister, so I think we're okay." He explained then let out a soft sigh before walking into the living room and sitting on the sofa.

Mordred followed, letting out a horrified gasp when he looked in front of him. "Where the hell is the TV?!" He shouted, grabbing onto Merlin's shirt. "Please tell me it's just out for maintenance!"

"Mordred...I don't believe they do that with tellies... I'm fifty two percent sure they fix those in the house.." Merlin said in a calm voice, brushing the other males hand away from his shirt. "But I do have one.. Don't panic. I got a new one online a week ago, it'll be here in a few days."

A long breath of relief left Mordred's lips at the others words. "Oh thank god... Don't ever do that again. I brought my android box, so we can watch all the good shows with no commercials. Like iZombie and Supernatural."

"Dear lord.. You're a dork." Merlin muttered then leaned his head back and looked at the ceiling.

"At least I'm a tidy dork! You have folded clothes on the back of the couch and books all over the place! 'Just vacuumed', my ASS!" Mordred almost shouted then stood up. "This place will be cleaned before the TV comes in."

Merlin sighed softly and looked up at Mordred with a questioning expression. "I picked everything up off the floor and put it on the sofa and table so I could vacuum.. But if you want to clean up, be my guest. I don't see why it's a problem though. None of my other exchange students complained... And you're the American.. Aren't you guys suppose to be messy.. America is where all the hoarders are, on the show."

Mordred listened and shook his head slowly. "No no no... Merlin... You were the first hoarder. Now get off your little tooshie and put your clothes away in your room.. And while you're up there, get all the dirty clothes off your floor, I know they're there."

"What about the wifi?" Merlin asked, trying to get out of having to clean his room.

"It can wait."

"I never would have taken you as a clean freak, Mordred... It's kind of funny because you look like a messy teen."

"Clothes... Now." Mordred retorted in a stern tone then pulled Merlin off the couch.

"But mooooom." Merlin whined then started up the stairs.

Half an hour and a lot of insults later, the house was spotless and the pizza was at the door. After the pizza was eaten and Mordred had the wifi the two of them went to sleep.

Merlin went to the school with Mordred to show him around the day before it started. He had to get his class set up and wanted to meet the new teacher and principal anyway, so he took the opportunity to do so on the warm Sunday afternoon.

"Mordred! How many times do I have to tell you? Don't touch the chemicals!" Merlin shouted at the other who quickly took his hand away.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Mordred said softly then started to walk around the room again, leaning against Merlin's desk with a small sigh. "Dude... I'm bored... Let's go back to the room with the frogs. it smelt weird in there."

"It smelt like formaldehyde, and no, we aren't going back in there." Merlin explained before walking away from the other to hang up a new motivational poster on the other side of the room. "Why don't you go bug someone else?... Go find the new principal or something.. And bring her back here, I want to meet her. Her name is Morgan Pendington, but you should probably call her Miss. Pendington, out of respect."

"Weird name." Mordred muttered under his breath then walked across the room and out the door. "If she's hot I call dibs." He said clearly before looking at the door and deciding to leave it open to annoy Merlin.

"Mordred! The door!" Merlin shouted then walked over, grumbling a few insults under his breath.

He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw a man with a book stuck in his face, making his way toward the closed fire door that was only a few feet away from Merlin's classroom door. He watched for a moment and waited to see if he would look up and miss the door, but after he realized the stranger was in fact not going to look up, he cleared his throat loudly, causing the man to look up, but still hit the door and fall, the book in his hands flying to Merlin's feet.

"Oh! Are you alright?" Merlin asked then helped the man up, but one look at his face made Merlin's hand slip from the others and he fell right back to the floor. "S-sorry... I uh... Have sweaty hands... It's been a long day." He said in an almost inaudible tone.

"Oh no.. It's fine.. I'm fine... Thank you for trying to help. I'm Arthur Pendington, I'm the new English teacher." Arthur said as he pulled himself up off the floor and held out a hand to shake Merlin's.

"Merlin... Merlin Emrys.." Merlin muttered as he shook Arthur's hand. "Wait... Did you say 'Pendington'?"He asked in shock, receiving a nod from Arthur. "So the principal is...?"

"Oh heavens! We're not married!" Arthur said with a laugh. "Morgana is my sister." He reassured then looked at Merlin with slight concern. "Are you alright, mate?... You look like you've seen a ghost.

"Oh I'm... I'm just glad to see that you're alright." He said with a small smile then looked down a bit. "I should uhm... I have to go meet your sister.. So. Goodbye then. Keep your head up... We wouldn't want anymore accidents." Merlin said with forced laugh before taking a few steps back and turning to walk away. "It was nice meeting you." he said before running down the hall.

"No running in the halls, Merlin!" Mordred shouted when he saw him approaching the office.

"Why?" Merlin said sternly when he caught glimpse of Morgana sitting in her big principal chair in her big principal office.

"Well because it's the rules, Merlin.. No running in the halls." Morgana retorted, a smug smirk o her lips.

"You know that's not what I meant. Why!? Why now?! Why doesn't he remember me?!"

"Merlin.. He wasn't a warlock in his past life.. Mordred and I remember because we were born with magic in both these lives, but Arthur is different.. You can't tell him anything, do you understand. I'm here to help you and my brother, so please don't make me the enemy." Morgana explained, looking into Merlin's fiery, yet sad eyes. "Especially considering, I'm the principal.. If you piss me off, I'll have you teaching in that small class with misbehaving children... What was it that the teachers called it again?"

"You're still arrogant, I see." Merlin grumbled.

"Sweety, I'm back from the dead and in charge of a school that's almost the size of a kingdom.. I'm going to have way too much fun with this job."

Merlin rolled his eyes and let out a small sigh before walking out of the office. "Mordred, I'm going home... You can come now, or later, I don't really care." He said before leaving the building and going home alone.


	2. Chapter 2

"Alex." There was a soft voice in the back of Mordred's mind, yelling at the familiar name. But... Who was Alex again? "Alex! Wake up now! This is school! You can not snooze away the day!" Merlin? That was Merlin's voice. Mordred threw himself awake. Merlin's voice! Not good!

"I'm sorry I'm not good enough!" Mordred shouted, standing from his desk and looking around before noticing they were at school. "Oh.. I uh... Sorry, Mr. Emrys... I'll make my way to see Ms. Pendington." The young male exclaimed softly as he grabbed his bag and looked down in embarrassment.

"There is no need to see her, Alex. Just stay after class, so we can talk." Merlin said from in front of the younger males desk, letting out a soft sigh before going back to the front of the classroom to continue explaining the activity they were going to do the next day.

It had been a little over a month since school had started up and Mordred was starting to get used to his new surroundings. However, since he had gotten there he hadn't been able to get off of American times. He was always tired and it showed, but he refused to talk about it with Merlin. Mordred's older house mate had even offered to get him some sleeping pills, but he continued to try to convince him that he was fine and didn't need any help.

On the other hand, Merlin had been trying to avoid Arthur as much as he could. He didn't think he could handle seeing his old friend in the state of a stranger. It was heart breaking and he had trouble speaking with him without trying to hold back his tears and usually failing. Arthur probably thought his coworker had some sort of extreme anxiety by now.

The bell finally rang. Lunch time. Mordred stood up and got his bag, walking up to Merlin's desk when all the other students were gone for lunch, his head down. "I'm sorry.. It won't happen again, Merlin. I promise." He told the other in a soft tone, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Mordred... Let me take you to the doctor.. Just to get you looked at. Jet lag doesn't usually last this long. You haven't slept in a month and that's not healthy." Merlin had a nearly pleading tone in his voice as he spoke. Mordred was actually starting to prove himself as an ally and dare he say it, a friend. Perhaps growing up as a kid in America really had changed his views, and this of course made him a little sentimental toward the young adult. This caused Merlin to begin to worry an awful lot about him.

Mordred sighed softly and shook his head. "I already refused the offer three times, just let me be... This is what you wanted anyway, isn't it?... For me to be back to my old miserable self?"

"Mordred.. That's not at all what I want. What's gotten into you lately? We were having a good time, you were being... Less of an arse.. What happened?" Merlin said, his expression half concerned, half disappointed. "Tell me what it is."

"Nothing happened!" Mordred snapped then turned with a small groan, throwing himself to sit on a desk. "It's nothing... Just stupid high school stuff." He added in a slightly sadder tone, refusing to look at Merlin. He would have ran out of the class to avoid further questions, however, there was a man in the way.

"Mr. Emrys... I'm sorry, would you like it if I came back later?" Arthur asked from the doorway, looking a tad bit embarrassed. The whole room was just leaking with negative energy.

"Oh.. Well I-" Merlin started, getting cut off by Mordred.

"I was just leaving. He's all yours." The teen stated as he got off the desk and pushed past the English teacher to get out of the room.

Arthur looked at him, slightly surprised at how quickly the boy jumped on the opportunity to leave. "Goodbye, Alex." He said cheerfully as the smaller man exited.

"Yeah.. Cheerios or whatever." Mordred grumbled before disappearing down the hall.

Arthur watched the retreating male, slowly turning to Merlin once he was gone. "Charming… Anyway... I was wondering if you have any masking tape. We ran out of book tape and some idiot took all the masking tape and we need tape to fix the Romeo and Juliet books. The kids from over the years weren't very kind to the books and the teacher from last year didn't do anything about it." The blond explained with a warm smile. The same smile that use to make Merlin's heart melt, now making his eyes threaten to do just that. Melt.

Merlin took a moment to recompose himself then nodded softly, opening his desk drawer and pulling out a few rolls of tape. One roll of duct tape and another of masking tape. "Here... If you need more, just give me a call. No need to come all the way down here." His voice was soft as thunder and his hand was a little shaky as he handed the tape rolls to the other.

"Thanks." Arthur said with a smile as he took the tape. "Stress?" He asked, gesturing to the others shaking hand.

"What?... No I just.." Merlin started, unable to find the right excuse. "Yes." He sighed out. "It's Mor-.. Alex... He hasn't been sleeping lately and he's started to get really bitter toward me and I just... He won't let me help him. I don't know what to do."

"Just wait for him. If he's not comfortable telling you what's going on then don't push him." Arthur explained with a small shrug, moving to place a hand on Merlin's shoulder. "Help as much as you can without making it obvious and eventually he might tell you. If he doesn't, that's okay too, but if you keep pushing him he'll only start to grow farther from you. Trust me, my nephew is exactly the same as him."

Nephew? But that would mean... Morgana had a child? With who? When? Why? How? Scratch that last one, but seriously how could someone think that was a good idea? She is very beautiful, yes, but also kind of a controlling bitch. Okay /a lot/ a controlling bitch. Sure she has her nice moments, but that's not very often. Even after growing up in this century she has proven herself very possessive. Maybe she manipulated him into having sex with her? This was honestly one of the most confusing moments Merlin had had in years. "So... Ms. Pendington... Your sister.. Has a son?" He asked, his voice quite obviously confused.

"Yes... He goes to the school. He took his father's last name, Adrien McNeil. He's in your first period class. Anyway.. I wish you luck with your hormonal friend. I'll see you later, mate."After the words escaped his mouth he left with the tape in hand, leaving a slightly bewildered, thankful and hurt Merlin.

Merlin was very confused about his feelings. His mind was everywhere at once and he was getting a little overwhelmed. Perhaps he would take a little break, go home for a little while. He didn't have a class to teach until last period, so he could definitely just go home and take a nap to calm down as long as he was back in a few hours. Maybe he could even text Mordred and tell him that he could go home as well if he was still having such a bad day.


	3. Chapter 3

"I'll tear your heart out, McNiel!" Mordred yelled as he shoved the other teen to the ground. One of his friends placed a hand on the American's shoulder as an attempt to calm him down a little bit, get a little bit of sense back into him. Mordred's hand flew back at the touch and smacked his friend, sending him back a bit and nearly to the ground. "Don't. Fucking. Touch me." He growled out to the boy who just wanted to help before turning back to the sandy blond boy who was picking himself up.

"Oi! It's not my fault you were a shit boyfriend! You should'a held onto her a little tighter." Adrien retorted, wrapping his arms around himself to mimic holding someone in his arms. "Or maybe…" He started, scanning his eyes over his classmates body. "It was your tiny, American prick that threw her off. Well… Let me tell you something. Hannah. Your girlfriend.. Oh sorry... _Ex_ girlfriend… She loves mine."

Those words stopped Mordred for a brief second before sending him forward, fist swinging and catching Adrien right in the chin before another fist came right back like a boomerang to hit him right back. Both of the teen boys fell to the ground and their small posse's ran off when they heard the angry principal on her way over to the basketball court behind the school they were currently in. "Adrien! Office! Now!" Morgana shouted before her son or Mordred could stand and hurt each other any further.

"What? Why me?! What about Alex?!" Adrien argued, standing with his fists clenched. However after a stern glance from his mother, he did as she told him and bowed his head as he walked past her to go to the office where he would be spoken to by his assigned vice principal before both boys would be spoken to by Morgana.

When Adrien was gone, Morgana lightly hit him on the side of the head after helping him up. "I don't know what's going on, but we can't have you getting all worked up like that. I would hate it if you're the one Arthur came back for… I don't to fight you. So you're going to have to get your act together." She explained then lightly rested a hand on the others cheek.

"Of course.. You go after me. Maybe instead of thinking the only possible outcome from that fight is me becoming the enemy… You're son is the jackass that's been torturing me since I met him." Mordred complained, gently swatting Morgana's hand away.

"Okay. First of all, don't call my son a jackass to my face, and second-..." Morgana started then cut herself off when Mordred reached into his pocket to pull out his vibrating phone, indicating a missed call. "Mordred! Listen to me when I'm talking to you. I might be your friend, but I'm also your principal and you are in trouble right now. Even if you weren't in trouble, it's rude to look at your phone in the middle of a conversation." She snapped before the phone started to vibrate again, this time signaling a call. "I swear, if you answer it you're getting detention for a week."

"It's merlin… I have to… He's been texting me like crazy." Mordred replied, receiving a sigh and an eyeroll from the older woman before he answered the phone, bringing it up to his ear. Before he could finish his, "Hello" he was cut off by a worried Merlin who rambled on about… Something. Mordred didn't catch half of it because he was holding the phone away from his ear to prevent damage to his eardrums. "Dude… Slow down… Do you wanna talk to Ms. Pendington?" He asked then received another shout from the other side of the phone.

"It was you in the fight wasn't it?! Damn it, Mordred! Yes, let me talk to her." Merlin took a moment to calm himself down before the phone was handed to Morgana.

"News travels that fast, huh?" She said into the phone then closed her eyes and raised a hand to her head. This was all very stressful for her and she wasn't really prepared to have Merlin yelling in her ear. However to her surprise he didn't yell. He was in fact quite calm now.

"Who did he get in a fight with? Are they both alright?" Merlin asked, his voice sounding slightly strained. "He's not in too much trouble is he? If you're planning on sending him home, I was already planning on bringing him home… And we are definitely having a long conversation about this when we get there."

Morgana sighed and shook her head. "Yes. I am planning on sending him home, but only after we have a discussion in the office. Him and Adrien are both going home." Merlin was silent for a moment when he heard 'Adrien'. Mordred picked a fight with Morgana's son and the only punishment he was getting was going home early with a warning? If this was the old Morgana he would probably have already been killed, or at least beaten to shit.

"I'm surprised you aren't pissed at him." Merlin said quietly after a moment of thinking about what to say.

"Mordred wouldn't have lashed out like that if Adrien didn't do something to make him." Morgana replied before gesturing for Mordred to follow her as she turned and started walking into the school. "Now hang up and let me do my job. You can wait in the office if you really want to." She told the man on the other end of the phone, hanging up before he could say anything else, and handing the phone back to Mordred. "You are going to stay calm in there. Understood? I don't care what he says to you, I'll give you both a beating if you break anything in my office."

"Fine." Mordred mumbled as he shoved his phone in his pocket.

Once in the office, Morgana let Mordred in then went to get Adrien from the smaller office next door. "Both of you sit down and be quiet. Don't say anything to each other, just listen and answer my questions. I'm going to take both sides into consideration, so don't interrupt each other. You are both going home and you are both going to help out Mr. Thompson with the garbage after school everyday for a month." Adrien opened his mouth to argue, but before a word could come out of his mouth, Ms. Pendington looked at him and spoke first. "If you have any arguments or complaints about that, I'll make it two months." This instantly made the blond boy go silent and lean back in his seat with his arms crossed.

"And your questions?" Mordred asked, a bit of attitude in his tone. Adrien turned to look at him with a slightly confused expression. Attitude? To his mother? That /never/ went over well.

Morgana also sent him a disapproving glance before clenching her teeth and taking a deep breath. "What were you two fighting about and how did it get so bad that a girl came to me in /tears/ telling me to break up the fight?"

The question received no answers, just a slight glance toward each other from the two boys. After a moment of silence, Mordred spoke up. " It was probably Hannah… She was my girlfriend, but Adrien took her from me and I got mad so I confronted him… It's his fault I punched him though.. I just wanted an apology."

"An apology? You pushed me before I could even say anything!" Adrien interrupted, earning a glare from his mother.

"I pushed you because you stole my girlfriend! Then you started insulting me!"

"You said you were going to rip my heart out!"

Mordred went silent then shrugged, looking down to the side. "Okay… Fair… But I was mad so a little threat was expected." He said in a slight grumble.

Morgana had a very disappointed and annoyed expression when Mordred admitted to threatening Adrien like that. "Well… It doesn't matter if you were mad or not.. Saying something like that is inappropriate.. And what was it that you said, Adrien? Obviously it wasn't something good." She took in a deep breath, already trying to gain her composure as she anticipated the coming explaination.

"Mother. Would I ever say something rude to a fellow classmate? Especially one this far from his home?" Adrien asked in mock hurt, Morgana giving him a look that said, 'Do you take me for an idiot?' After seeing his mother's expression, he continued. "Fine.. Yes… I was being a jerk, but does it really matter what I said? I can't take it back. It's not like I can just go back in time and stop myself from saying it. Even if I could… I wouldn't."

"Jackass." Mordred muttered then stood up.

"Sit." Morgana demanded, pointing at the chair Mordred had just stood from.

"Hey. The jackass is right. Unless he goes back in time and changes, it won't get better. It doesn't matter and this conversation is pointless. Just let me go home so I can break some things and get my anger out." Mordred argued in nearly a shout as he walked toward the door.

"Mordred! Sit down!" Morgana yelled as his hand touched the doorknob. The words left her mouth and her hand went up to cover it. "A-Alex.. Alex sit down." She said quietly, watching the frozen Mordred.

"Mordred?" Adrien asked, slightly confused. After a moment, it dawned on him. "Mordred.. /He's/ Mordred? Mordred from the stories? The Mordred who killed king Arthur? The Mordred who was like a son to you? You said that he was the one person you thought wasn't coming back."

"I didn't think he was coming back… This isn't what we are talking about. We're dealing with your problem with each other."

"No no." Mordred started, turning to look at Morgana. "You told him about me?" He asked, pointing angrily at the blond boy. "Why the hell-"

"This!... Is not the time.. Sit down." Morgana shouted, pointing to the seat.

"No! I think this is the time! We weren't supposed to tell anyone!" Mordred growled, his voice sounding slightly ferocious.

"I know!..." Morgana paused for a moment and took in a soft breath, shaking her head. "Fine… We'll talk about this, but we _all_ need to calm down… Alright?"

Mordred took a second to ponder the offer before sitting down and nodding. Even though he would cooperate, However, he wasn't going to be happy about it. "I'm calm… Spill." He grumbled out, his tone only slightly angry now.

"I wasn't going to tell him… But when he started to get older, he started to show signs that he was a sorcerer.. I had no choice." Morgana explained, letting out an annoyed sigh when she saw both of the boys opening their mouths to say something. "No. I'm not done."

"Okay, but you're talking about me like I'm not here and I would appreciate it if you wouldn't." Adrien said in a sassy tone, looking at his mom with a raised eyebrow.

"And I would appreciate it if you would shut the fuck up." Mordred grumbled under his breath.

"I'll fuck you up, mate! I don't care where we are or _who you_ are!" Adrien shouted, standing from his seat again.

"Really? I have so much more knowledge and experience, plus I'm stronger. Physically and as a sorcerer. Do you honestly wanna go down that road, kiddo?"

"That is enough out of both of you! You are both suspended for three days and grounded!"

"You can't ground me!" Mordred argued, standing as well.

"No. I can't. However Merlin can, and it just so happens we're both teachers with each others numbers and respect. It doesn't matter who is stronger. It matters who has the most power, and out of the three of us, that is me. Oh.. That's right I am also stronger… Can't forget about that, so go get your things and go home. If I hear about any more problems between you two, there will be worse consequences than a little suspension. Perhaps I'll silence you." Morgana's voice was stern and commanding, making both the young men silent and share a slightly frightened glance. "Understood?!" She shouted with a grumpy mom look.

"Yes, ma'am." Both the boys mumbled, looking down at their hands that were now neatly in front of them.

"Then get going. I'm done talking to you for now." They both left and Morgana leaned back against the back of her chair with a long sigh. After a few minutes she called Merlin and explained the situation. After she hung up, there was a knock at the door. She closed her eyes and composed herself before standing up and sweetly saying, "Come in."

"Bad time?" Arthur said with a small smile as he poked his head through the door.

"How could you tell?" She asked with a sarcastic smile.

"You had the intercom on through the whole thing with the boys… The whole school heard." He answered, looking at the woman with a serious expression.

"What?!" Morgana shouted, frantically looking through the mess of paper in her desk to see if there were any books or something on the button of the intercom.

"I'm joking. I saw Adrien in the hall and he told me that he got in a fight with Alex." Arthur said with a laugh.

"You're such a jerk. Don't scare me like that." Morgana put a hand on her forehead and once her brother walked into the room, she punched his shoulder. "Do you need something?"

Arthur nodded and took in a soft breath before sitting down and narrowing his brows, trying to think for a moment. "I was wondering… You and Merlin talk, right?... I mean.. You have to.. So… Do you know why he's always avoiding me?"

Morgana took a moment to smile and look at her brother with a fond laugh. "Oh Arthur… My dear brother.. He doesn't try to avoid you. It's just a big school."

"He turns around when he sees me walking down the hallway."

"He is very forgetful?" Morgana said, a little unsure of the answer she gave.

"Morgana Pendington. What's going on? Does he know me from high school? Because if I was a jerk to him,will apologize… I think I would remember someone named Merlin though."

"No no. It's nothing like that. Just give him some time. He'll come around. He's been through a lot recently. How about you come over for dinner? I'll order Chinese." Morgana assured her brother, gently patting his shoulder and moving to the door. "I'm gonna do some rounds… See what's going on with everyone. You're welcome to come along if you'd like. I'm here for you, little brother… Just don't stay in my office or I'll actually kill you."

"Yeah. I'll tag along. You probably need help with telling the kids off." Arthur said in a slightly sarcastic tone, rolling his eyes before walking out of the office and holding the door open for Morgana.

Hopefully tomorrow would be a better day.

 **Author's note: Sorry for the late upload! I thought i would be able to handle weekly chapters, but it turned out my summer was a lot more stressful than i thought and now I'm back in school. But now I promise I'll have more chapters. I'm so sorry.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Authors Note: Hey everyone. Sorry it's late and short. I tried really hard to make this a long chapter, but it just wasn't needed for the story it leads into. I'm working on the next chapter as you read this one though so be ready for some good feelings. I lie they may be bad feelings depending how you look at it. Also! In other news! I have started a web comic. It's nothing special, but I would appreciate the follow and the views. I have tumblr, instagram, twitter, as well as a facebook page. It's called "DinosaurPrince" I think it's pretty good and I have a few followers, but I don't get a lot of like. I think I've gotten one. So pls follow me. There will be more content uploaded here and on my comic soon I promise. 3**

Merlin walked into Mordred's room, giving him a skeptical look before handing him his cellphone. "If you get in another fight, I'm going to take it away for a lot longer. Do you understand?" He asked in a stern tone. "I'll turn the wifi back on when you're allowed back at school." He added, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair. "You're lucky you didn't get sent back to America. You know that, right? You are so lucky Morgana is a friend."

"I know… You've been telling me everyday since I got suspended." Mordred mumbled under his breath as he turned on his phone and checked his text messages to see what had been going on while he was away from school. After a few moments, he realized that Merlin was still talking to him, so he quickly snapped up from his phone to look at him. "Sorry… I wasn't paying attention… Lot's of texts." He told the man, setting the phone down and biting his lip to pay attention to what was being said to him.

"I said, 'You better finish your homework' I brought it home for a reason." Merlin explained, sitting next to Mordred on his bed with a slight look of concern on his face. "Are you feeling alright?... You look a little pale." He added in a softer tone, pressing the back of his hand to the others forehead. "You're not warm… Was it a text you read? Maybe I should take the phone ba-"

"No!" Mordred snapped, swatting Merlin's hand away before looking down with a sad expression. "Sorry… I… I Just… I don't want to read a text from her… I already know what she's gonna say… So What's the point?" He paused a moment and took in a deep breath, holding his phone out to his housemate. "Maybe just… Delete the notifications… Don't read them though… I'll do it later… When I build up the courage." The teen requested in a soft, sad tone.

Merlin refused the phone and gently pushed Mordred's hand toward him, letting out a quiet and shaking his head. He could see how much Mordred was hurting and he knew it would only hurt him more if he read the messages. "Talk to Morgana… It seems she always knows what to say to you." He said softly, rubbing the slouching teens back in a soothing motion. "You're strong.. And you have friends… You'll make it through this… It's worse these days, isn't it? They can keep coming at you even though you aren't physically together."

"Barely… Almost all my friends chose her side... I hate this… My guidance counselor said that if I have one more slip up, he's gonna send me to another anger management class."

Another? Merlin had no idea Mordred had gone to anger management before. That would explain why he was so much more kind and understanding since they met again.

"It was that dick-head Adrien who caused all this. I hope he gets hit by a car… Or his magic acts up and he accidentally blows himself up."

"Mordred-..." Merlin began, about to tell him off before sighing and standing. "Come on. Put on some comfortable clothes. We're going out."

Mordred gave him a curious and confused glance, shoving his phone in his pocket as well as his hands as he stood along with the other. "I'm already in comfy clothes. Where are we going?" He asked in a soft grumble.

"You'll see. Come on." He repeated, starting to walk out of the room then down the stairs and out the front door.

Mordred followed, shuffling to the car and slouching over when they got in. "Why won't you tell me where we're going?" He grumbled, resting his head on his shoulder and looking at Merlin with a grouchy and upset expression. If you're trying to cheer me up, you really shouldn't."

There was a soft silence before the clank and rattle of the engine started and Merlin spoke. "I'm not trying to cheer you up. I just want to show you something. Put your seat belt on."


	5. Chapter 5

Nearly half an hour of driving passed and it was silent for the most part, but the silence was driving Mordred crazy. "Can we listen to music? Your breathing is pissing me off."

"My apologies. I didn't know my existence was such a burden to you." Merlin replied sarcastically with a slight roll of his eyes. Once they got to a stop sign Merlin pressed the button on the radio and turned it onto a channel with songs he thought Mordred would like.

Mordred almost immediately turned the radio to a different station with classical music and leaned against the door to look out the window. "The best of Bach. Top ten countdown." The announcer nearly sang in his calming, soft voice.

Merlin looked confused as he glanced at the teen. He prefered classical? But he could have sworn he heard him listening to Alice In Chains the other day. However, he also heard Nicki Minaj, so it seemed his music taste was all over the place. Maybe it depended on his mood? It was decided. Merlin would ask about it when Mordred wasn't in such a shit mood.

"Are we there yet?" He asked after around another half hour. He didn't like being in the car this long, and was starting to get a little motion sick.

"We'll be there in a few minutes. Don't worry, it'll be worth it. I promise." Just as Merlin had promised, they had arrived at their destination in no time. He parked the car in a dirt parking lot and turned off the engine before getting out and waiting for Mordred.

"This is dumb…" Mordred grumbled as he got out and looked around at the lush forest around them. "What are we going here?"

"Don't you remember? Take a really good look around…" Merlin offered in a very soft voice, gesturing to the trees and bushes.

Mordred sighed and rolled his eyes before giving in and doing as he was told. It took him a minute, but sure enough he realized where they were. Of course. How could he have missed it? The trees, the ground, the energy. It was all the same. Sure the trees were a little bigger and some were new as well as quite a bit of the forest missing, but this was it. It was home. He could feel the druid magic all around him, flowing through him. It was a feeling he hadn't felt for a long time. It calmed him, brought back so many memories. Happy, painful, wonderful, and horrible. He felt so many emotions… And he loved it.

"I come here when I feel dull… It's very refreshing… Most of the other places I used to go to are destroyed, But there's a lot of history here, so they put a trail through it with plaques and facts and stories about theories of the druids… They're kinda funny… If you want, I'll leave you to just meditate… If you do that… It's a good stress reliever." Merlin rambled, stopping himself when Mordred leaned into him and hugged him. He was crying again… The poor boy barely got a break from crying since the incident.

"No I… Please don't leave me alone… Just… Be quiet and we can walk together." He whispered, pressing his face into his friends shoulder. "I'm sorry I've been a dick." It was so strange hearing Mordred talk. Now that he had an American accent, Merlin couldn't help but try to remember what he sounded like before. Right now however, in this moment, this place, he could hear the soft change in his shaky voice. It was comforting and almost heartbreaking at the same time.

Merlin stayed silent and gently wrapped his arms around the other man, rubbing his back lightly, in a calming manner. "It's understandable… I'm sorry for being hard on you." He muttered. "I don't regret taking your phone away, but I do regret nagging at you… Please don't use it against me."

Mordred let out a small chuckle at the last part and took a step away from Merlin, wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his hoodie. "You know I'm gonna." He said with a very light smile that was barely there, but still reassured Merlin.

"Come on. I'll stay quiet if you let me read the plaques to you." Merlin smiled, nodding toward the trail and starting to walk.

They spent damn near two hours on the trail, reading informational plaques, laughing at inaccuracies, going off the trails to explore and find a few old caves that they both remembered, one of which Mordred had his first kiss in.

All in all it was a good day. They bonded and they both came out about things they had never told each other before. Merlin explained that he thought he had a crush on Morgana at one point and Mordred told a few middle school stories. They even talked about some spells they learnt over the years and how to use them. Eventually their excursion was sadly cut short when Mordred's phone rang with an unknown caller ID.

The teen looked confused and gave Merlin a slightly frightened look before handing the phone to him. Mordred didn't want to answer it out of fear it might be one of Adrien's or Hannah's friends calling to harass him. "Hello?" Merlin spoke into the phone, giving an even more confused look at the voice on the other side.

"Merlin? Why are you answering Mordred's phone? I don't care. Where are you and why aren't you answering your phone? Get your sweet cherry arse to the school, you're supposed to be supervising the football game today." Morgana's booming voice sounded, making Merlin gasp a little.

"The game? I forgot. I'm so sorry. We're at least half an hour out of town, I can't get there in time. I'll make it up to you though, I promise." Merlin replied in a slightly panicked tone.

"Merlin. I swear to the sweet heavens. You offered to do this job weeks ago. If you're backing out because you don't want to be around my brother I-.."

"It's not that!... It's really not. I simply forgot. Mordred was upset so I took him on a walk…" Merlin interrupted, biting his lip in anticipation.

"Fine… But I'm putting you on cleanup duty, so get over here now and drive fast." The principal demanded. Damn she was angry. Merlin would be surprised if he didn't get pulled into the office the next day and be penalized or get some sort of privilege revoked.

There was a click on the other end of the phone and then a dial tone and Merlin handed it back to the grumpy looking Mordred. "Did you bring me here just so you could avoid Arthur?" He questioned in a slightly angry tone.

"Mordred. I just forgot. This has nothing to do with Arthur. I saw you upset and I just wanted to help you. The game wasn't a priority."

The wind seemed to blow harder for a moment before Mordred shook his head and turned away. "Whatever… Let's go home. I just wanna go to bed…" He grumbled as he walked back in the direction of the car.

Merlin stayed quiet. It was best to not say anything, so he simply followed the boy to the car and drove home in silence, the only sound being Mordred's classical playing softly on the car speakers.

 **Note: When I say "Football" I mean soccer for all you non-Europeans out there. I understand. I too get confused about the difference.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note: This chapter is gonna focus on Morgana yaaaaaay. Exciting. I honestly just love Morgana as a character and I'm going to try my hardest to convey her personality and explain what I think she would be like in this day and age and why. I would also like to thank all of the people writing reviews. I really appreciate the feedback and encouragement. I just read all of them and they all made me smile and (not gonna lie) almost cry because I'm listening to sad music and it's very late. Leave me alone I'm a very emotional human being.**

 **Anyway, thank you all again I hope you keep enjoying this and I really wish I could tell you all of my plans but I don't want to spoil and I'm just so excited for this. I love you all so keep on keeping on 3**

Morgana stood in the field next to the bleachers, one arm crossed over her chest and the other resting on it with her thumb nail in her mouth. Why was Merlin so late? "This is ridiculous." She muttered under her breath, tapping her foot as she looked around the nearly empty field.

"Morgana?" Her head quickly snapped over at the sound of her name and her brothers voice. "Are you still waiting for Merlin?" He asked as he walked toward her and placed a hand on her shoulder. The simple motion calmed her a bit. It always had since they were children.

Morgana sighed softly and moved the hand from her face and allowed it to sit on Arthurs. "Yeah… He still isn't answering his phone and M-... Alex said he had already dropped him off so I don't know where he is… I'm honestly starting to worry about him… And Adrien… Damn it…" She explained, closing her eyes and gently squeezing Arthur's hand.

"Calm down a bit. Go check on Adrien and I'll wait here for Merlin. I'll call you when he gets here and you can yell at him over the phone." Morgana nodded at her brother's suggestion and took in a deep breath as he kissed her forehead as a goodbye.

She thanked him and walked back to her car as quickly as she could with her heels sinking into the moist ground. When she got in and buckled up, she quickly drove home and was greeted with a very sudden hug from her son when she walked in. "What's this? Were you doing something you weren't supposed to while I was gone?" She asked, but didn't reject a hug from the teen.

Adrien shook his head and let out a very gentle sigh, pulling back from his mom and looking up at her with tears in his eyes. "It happened again." He whispered, using one hand to wipe his eyes. At this, Morgana desperately pulled him back into her arms and kissed the top of his head as best she could, as he was slightly taller than her.

"Adrien… That's an emergency that you could have used the phone for… What happened this time?" The woman questioned in a very soft and loving tone. Adrien remained silent, however, and shook his head. He couldn't get words to leave his mouth, so Morgana just waited patiently. When he was ready, he would speak.

It took quite a few seconds before he was finally able to make words form and he explained in a very quiet manor. "It… It was dark… And I… Could just see a girl… And she was with a woman… The woman was so familiar… She said you killed her… You killed the girl, mum… I don't know who she was, but I loved her… And you killed her... But you wouldn't… It had to be fake… It had to…" The boy started sobbing and clung to his mother with his face in her shoulder. These visions really took their toll on him mentally, and sadly there was nothing any doctor could prescribe to him to dull the pain. There was nothing wrong with his brain on any monitor or scan and so he was forced to deal with it on his own, with nothing but his mother to comfort him.

"Do you want to try that tea? It worked so well last time." Morgana asked softly, simply as a worried mother trying to help her frightened and hurting son.

He nodded quickly and waited for her to make the first move. Morgana brought Adrien into the sitting room and set him on the couch, wrapping a blanket around him and kissing his forehead once again before going off into the kitchen to make him his tea. Two lumps, a dash of milk, and a small charm that would put him into a dreamless sleep that would help him forget his alarming vision.

Adrien drank the tea quickly and after barely a second, he fell asleep on the sofa. He looked so sweet when he was sleeping. He might have been a six foot, "badass", teenager, but when he was asleep, and everything was said and done, he was still Morgana's innocent, four year old boy who had snuck into bed her bed after a nightmare.

Now there was work to be done and Arthur still hadn't called. She went upstairs and sat at her desk in her tidy office, starting on some paperwork when she heard a soft buzzing from her purse. Morgana swiftly pulled out her phone and turned off the alarm, pulling out an orange container, taking out a plain, white, circular pill and swallowing it dry.

Another buzzing. Her phone again, this time it was a call from Arthur. "Hello, brother dearest." She sang out when she answered, putting the phone on speaker and opening her laptop so she could do some other work while talking.

"Hello my wonderful sister. Merlin just arrived and he's pretty beat… I think I'll stay and help him out… When I'm done, I think I'll just get some pizza and come over. My cat's in heat, so I'm avoiding home."

"Well, you're always welcome here, and I'm sure Adrien would love some pizza, he hasn't been aloud fun food since I grounded him and he had one of his nightmares today."

"Can do.. You don't want to yell at Merlin for being so late? That's odd."

"Adrien is napping… Plus I just took my pill. I'm mellowed right out. Seriously… If you ever want drugs, you know where to find me. I'll give you a family discount." She joked.

"What a benevolent dealer." Arthur joked back. "Alrighty then. I'll see you in a bit, Merlin's already running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. Love you."

"Love you too. Thank you for doing this. Bye, Arthur." Morgana smiled as she hung up and typed away on her computer. Work was exhausting and she wished it would just be done with, but to hell if she could think of a spell to get a computer to type itself. She had a spell that would sign her signature on it's own, but for some reason magic and computers didn't like each other.

It didn't take too long for Morgana to get tired and fall asleep at her desk. She had barely gotten any sleep the night before and it had been a long day. Her rest didn't last long though, Arthur was at the door in less than an hour. The loud doorbell had woke Adrien who answered and of course, boys being boys, they started talking, both in a very loud tone, about football or something… Maybe rugby? They both like sports and stuch.

Morgana groggily walked down the stairs and rubbed her eyes. "Have either of you ever considered speaking in a decent tone?" She asked loudly before pulling both her boys into her arms. "Where's my pizza, Arthur?" The freaking QUEEN asked in stern tone, pushing her peasant brother out of her cuddle puddle.

"It's on the way… I ordered it for delivery because I didn't want to carry the pizza with all your toppings. This way if it gets all messed up you can blame the carrier and not me." Arthur explained before pulling a pack of candy out of his pocket and handing it to his sister. "I hope this will make up for it." Morgana examined the candy and took it with a nod before pulling him back in. "You alright, Adrien?" He asked softly, giving the boy a concerned look that Morgana mimicked.

"Oh… Yeah… Sorry.. I guess I just kind of zoned out for a minute." Adrien mumbled out his reply, leaning into his family and closing his eyes. He felt so distant for some reason… He wanted to hold on, but he could feel his bridges slowly burning.

Morgana could hear it in his voice and see it in his facial expressions as well as his body language. It was a feeling she knew all too well, a feeling she had always prayed would never be forced upon her son, but here he was struggling, and she knew nothing she did would help, so she just had to hold onto him and wait for it to pass. "Maybe the pizza will make you feel better. You still like Gary's loaded pizza, right?"

"No… I never liked it… I still love Gary's loaded pizza though." Adrien tried a smile and Morgana returned it.

They had such a good night together. The three of them as a family. They were all they had left, Arthur and Morgana's parents never really spoke to them unless it was a holiday or special occasion and they didn't have very much extended family so that was it. The three of them hanging out and enjoying themselves. Arthur was more like a brother to Adrien than an uncle and Morgana was a wonderful mother.

The night was over, the pizza was eaten, the teenager was asleep in bed, and the uncle had gone home. The only thing keeping Morgana from sweet slumber was one more paper to write up for the teachers and students. She let out a big yawn and as she was finishing up the paper, there was a knock on the door. Morgana thought a moment and gave a confused look as she got up from her desk and walked slowly to the door, opening it swiftly and gasping at who she saw. "Morgause?"

 **Note: Wow spoop. Where did she come from? I don't know. Wow. You'll get some exposition, I promise. Also, sorry for the long ass author's note at the beginning, I was tired and emotional and I'm too lazy to edit it rn so ¯\\_(** **ツ** **)_/¯**

 **New chapter coming soon. Probably gonna focus on a different character.**

 **Kay byyyyyyyyyye 3**


	7. Chapter 7

Morgana gasped and jumped up in a panic, her skin covered in a cold sweat. She looked around at the room that was not her castle chamber, her eyes then stopping on the other bed across the room from her. She took in a deep breath and cuddled back under her covers, holding onto her **Belle** stuffy for dear life.

( **Note: Belle as in beauty and the beast.)**

After the nightmare, she slept silently through the night, waking up to the sound of a girl screaming. "How could you?! I know you did it, Arthur! How could you?!" The girl yelled. It took a moment for Morgana to realize what was going on and she slowly got out of bed to see what the commotion was.

"What's wrong, Morgause?" She asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes softly and yawning.

"Arthur broke Shelly!"

"I did not! It wasn't me, I was asleep!" Arthur argued.

"That's no alibi! You don't have anyone to back you up!"

Morgana's eyes started to water as she listened, letting out a small whine. "Stop stop… I'm sorry, I broke shelly…" She whispered out in a slightly frightened tone.

"I knew it!" Morgause shouted, grabbing her little sister's doll and holding it above her head. "I knew you were the culprit!"

"No you didn't!" Arthur argued, trying to grab the Belle doll back from the older girl. "You thought I did it, don't be such a nob-head!"

"I knew she did it, but she wouldn't tell me unless I was being mean to you! Stop trying to be a hero and let me punish the little murderer!" She shouted, threatening to rip off Belle's head.

"I'm not a murderer! It was an accident!" Morgana cried, gasping when she saw a large hand reach over her head and take the doll from her sister. "Pa?" She whispered as she turned around to see their very tired father.

"All of you go to the kitchen." Uther demanded the children, watching Arthur walk past him with his head down, then glaring at Morgause who huffed and pushed Morgana as she passed. "Ignore her, little princess." He said in almost a whisper as he lifted the sobbing girl into his arms. "Now… Tell me what happened in your words."

"I think I broke Shelly." Morgana muttered, cuddling into the large man. To her he was a freaking giant.

"You think you broke her? Why don't you know?"

"I had a dream… It was scary… I watched somebody's head get cut off and I was in a castle and now she's broken…" Morgana explained, receiving a slightly disturbed expression from her father. "You don't believe me, do you?" She then whispered before she was given her doll back.

"We'll see… I want to hear Morgause's side of the story too." Morgana nodded to that and closed her eyes, feeling a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"She murdered my best friend! She deserves to suffer!" Morgause snapped at Arthur as Uther walked in with the youngest child in his arms.

"Maybe if you were nicer, you would have real friends." Arthur grumbled so only his sister would hear. No way was he getting in trouble too.

"Quiet, both of you." Uther exclaimed as he set Morgana on a chair next to Arthur. "I want all of you to take a deep breath and calm down, alright? And when you're done, I want to hear Morgause's side of the story.

There was a very short silence between the sound of each child's inhale and exhale and then Morgause's small rant. "I was sleeping with Shelly and we were happy as usual, but then when I woke up, her head was gone! And Morgana admitted to doing it and so that means you have to punish her. An eye for an eye a head for a head."

"I didn't mean t-" Morgana began, being cut of by her sister.

"You're a liar! How do you accidentally rip a head off a doll?!"

"Morgause. Is it possible that you did it in your sleep?" Uther asked in a gentle tone. "This could all just be a misunderstanding."

"No! Morgana did it and I know she did!"

"Just admit that you broke your own stupid doll so we can watch cartoons." Arthur grumbled, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms.

"No! She did it! You're letting her get away with murder! She's such a spoiled brat! She's not even our real sister!" Morgause shouted, after jumping off her chair to point at Morgana and emphasize her point.

"Hey!" Arthur shouted back, also jumping off of his chair then hitting his sister's hand out of the air.

"Sit down! Both of you." Uther interrupted, the loud voice sending both the children into their seats. "Take another breath. Morgause… I want you to apologize to your sister."

"But I-!"

"Now." Uther snapped sternly.

"I'm sorry Morgana." She grumbled, crossing her arms and looking in the opposite direction.

"Now Morgana I want you to apologize to your sister."

"I'm sorry Morgause." The girl peeped out.

"And Arthur… Apologize to Morgause."

"What did I do?" Arthur asked with some attitude.

"I know you said something rude to her, I was right here when you said it, not only that, but you hit her, so apologize." Of course Uther didn't hear what he said and only knew that he had said it, but he wasn't going to play dumb, he knew the boy was getting back at Morgause for all the mean things she had said to and about him over the years.

"I'm sorry Morgause…" Arthur grumbled.

"Good. Now… I'm going to make breakfast and when I'm done, I will fix shelly and decide what the punishment will be." The man explained before sending the children off to do their Saturday morning routine of cartoons and arguing about the channel. Kids are so cute.

"You're so good with them." A woman's voice said in a sweet tone as she walked into the kitchen. "I didn't want to muck up your parenting. They respect you so much. I'm just the evil stepmother." She said before walking to her husband and kissing him lightly.

"You aren't evil, Lidia… You are as much their mother as Igraine was, and that means you need to help me think up a punishment." Uther explained, gently resting his hands on Lidia's hips, pulling her closer as she rested her hands on his shoulders.

Lidia hummed quietly in thought before suggesting, "No pudding for the week." She kissed the man lightly and giggled softly as she was dipped.

As soon as Uther was about to say something to his wife he was interrupted by a crying Morgana running into the kitchen. "Pa! Ma!" She cried, hugging onto her mum's leg.

"Don't listen to her! She's a liar! I didn't do it! It was her!" Morgause yelled as she ran in after her little sister, tears also running down her face.

"Calm down, duckie." Lidia said softly as she picked her daughter up and started to rub her back, Uther moving to pick up his daughter.

"What happened?" He asked in a calm tone, also rubbing the young girl's back. "Where's Arthur?" A small twinge of fear pinched at his and Lidia's heart when they didn't get an answer, only silence from Morgause and louder sobs from Morgana.

Uther put his daughter down and rushed into the family room where he saw his son on the floor, completely unconscious. He quickly picked the small boy into his arms and tried to wake him up, but it wasn't working. Now he was starting to panic and all he could think to say was, "What happened?"

"Morgause said a bad word." Morgana said through her sobs.

"Morgana, now isn't the time to tell fibs." Lidia told her daughter.

"I'm not, mummy… She said the… Shut up word… And I pushed her and he just... Stopped."

"I'm taking him to the hospital… Watch the girls and get the truth if you can." Uther explained before leaving with an unconscious Arthur laying limp in his arms.

In the end, the doctors never found anything wrong with the boy and he woke up the next day. He was immediately back to his happy seven year old self and had an amazing story about a dream he had where he was a king with a wizard friend that he went on adventures with.

 **Author's note:I'm soooo sorry again for being so late with this chapter! Thank you so much for understanding. I had a lot of fun with this chapter and it wasn't that long unfortunately, but the next one will be good, promise. If you guys want more flashbacks like this… Well… There will be whether you want it or not… So… I hoped you liked it. I'm gonna get right on the next chapter after I upload this one. Thanks so much again for understanding and staying loyal. 3 Stay safe, be good, and keep dreaming, my loves 3**


	8. not a chapter sorry its an apology

**I'm literally the worst. I honestly can't even remember if I've started the new chapter and I'm just. UHG I'm so sorry. I've been obsessed with Be More Chill and I haven't been thinking about anything else. There's a special place in hell for authors like me. I'll try to start paying more attention to this fic again soon and I'm probably gonna start a BMC fanfic because there are very few good ones. I'm so sorry. stay cool, my dudes. I'll update as soon as possible. Also thank you to the new followers. I think there are two or three more. I feel accomplished. I should probably repay you. I'll put some fan service in soon ;)  
** Or more angst... Get ready to feel that small bit of sadness in your chest. Probably not full on tears because I'm not that talented a writer, but if you do (or have) actually cry (cried), lemme know that would be neat.


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